Why spend Sunday Monday Tuesday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory (rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com) and let him know!

Fun Fun Fun Recaps Recaps Recaps

Fun Fun Fun Fest marks the end of festival season in Austin–and all our lovely music bloggers have finished it off with an exclamation point.  Before we drift into the dismal abyss that is Winter, let’s take a look back at the last hurrah: the trifecta of fun.

• Nathan over at Austin Town Hall drops his Bottom 5 of Fun Fun Fun Fest.
• Christine at Delicious Noise has some great pics of people at FFF (and she gives a shout out to our humble blog!).
• Eric Uhlir‘s Flick feed has great pics of Fun Fun Fun Fest live performances and bands.
• And don’t forget Mary Rehak‘s Flickr Feed with pics of performances. We like her Ratatat pics, but can’t stand the band.
• Austin Sound live-blogged and reviewed several performances <–It’s like being there, but without all the sweaty kids, mud, ear eruptions, and cheap beer…
• Josh over at the Backline Show caught up with some of the bands backstage. Check out his podcast for interviews.
• Lots of video interviews with FFF Fest musicians from the good folks over at ‘NITES blog.
• More More More videos from ULoveI
• This personal account of Fun Fun Fun Fest from Lazy Smurf is hella cute–esp the pic of her sleepy puppy.
• Vanessa over at Sailor Legs bids adieu to festival season.

Nosey Noise

On the realz, I can’t stand people that move into a neighborhood that has always had outdoor music, festivals or events nearby and then COMPLAIN. Sadly, thus is the case in our fair city, and the grownups higher up are trying to turn off the music from the masses.

• Acoustical consultant Joshua Leasure over at Austin Noise takes a scientific look at the noise coming from the Nutty Brown Cafe and says it’s WAY over the limit prescribed by three different ordinances and guides.
• On November 16th, an addendum to the Noise Ordinance went into effect. The new ordinance states: “A person may not operate sound equipment in a watercraft audible or causing vibration 100 feet from the equipment.”  Joshua at Austin Noise again uses his scientific powers to determine that the new ordinance would mean that you’d basically have to choose between talking to your friends or listening to music–but not both.  He also argues the ordinance is unfair. <–DEF A GOOD READ

Slap My Forehead and Call Me a Teabagger

My Granny Dillo has no idea that the word “teabag” has a sexual meaning to it.  For some who haven’t tried it, the word is offensive.  Snowed In has been waging a war against the offensive word when used in reference to the group of folks who are vaguely protesting something (taxes? socialism? racial equality? Who knows?) and trying to connect it with the Boston Tea Party.

• On Tuesday, he got pissed off at twitter user @anamariecox’s continuous use of “teabagger.”
• On Wednesday, he discovered that the word was used by members of the conservative group to describe themselves. He feels upset that someone on “his side” would use such an offensive term. He doesn’t want to be around a movement that uses language that is offensive to his children. Ultimately, he says that everyone (on both sides) needs to grow up and stop using the word.
• I, for one, completely agree with Snowed In. Let’s all stop using the word “teabag” when referencing politics.  I mean, I don’t want to think of those teabaggers when I’m trying to spice up a Tuesday night with the ole Dillo missus, if you know what I mean.

Waller Creek Project No Longer in Drought

Looks like the Waller Creek Project is starting to flow again. Jude over at Downtown Austin has notes from the last week’s meeting.

She Lived Her Life Like a Candle in the Wind

World-renowned night blogger Freaky Franky Mae recently moved back to Austin from Brooklyn to be back in the city she loved, covering the folks that she loved. Many of us met her in real life for the first time at the Bleet-up.  Sadly, her time here was short lived.  After a cocaine binge, Franky was found bludgeoned to death in her living room.

Caleb over at Rusty Screw Productions captured Franky at her finest at the Bleet-Up. He also was there when her life was so brutally taken from her. Franky and her party rats will  be very greatly missed. Check out the video for more:

Caleb Does the Bleet Up, or: My Bleety Valentine from Rusty Screw Productions on Vimeo.

SUPER MURAL!

Will over at Public School painted a mural at Super Yoga Place. Here’s a stop-action video of the painting process:

From Austin City Hall

• The City announced enhanced usability and functionality on the homepage.  If you ask me, it looks like they added a little makeup–but it’s still jumbled and overwhelming. (http://www.cityofaustin.org/).
• Trail of Lights dates have been announced. No outside contractors and only half the park means no $5 entrance fee. If you don’t bike, parking is $10 per vehicle.  Check out this gem from the city’s marketing dept:

“At a time when so many families are having to scale back their holiday plans, I am delighted that the Parks and Recreation Department has put together a program that will allow families to create lasting holiday memories without affecting their personal budgets,” said City Manager Marc Ott.

• The City is taking applications for artists who want their work to appear in City Hall in 2010.

From Austin Food Bloggers

• Thanksgiving is a comin. Do you know how to buy a turkey? (via Fête and Feast).
• This recipe for French Toast Stuffed with Goat Cheese topped with Ice Cream is totally fat-free, right? (via MisoHungry Makes It With Moonshine)
• Our Hot Wings bring all the boys to the yard (via Austin Epicurean).
• It’s turnip season. Don’t be a hater. Try this recipe from Best of Thymes.
• I’m eatin vegan sushi. D’uh! (via eat’n veg’n).
• All the food at FINO looks like it’s hearty and perfect for cold weather (via poco-cocoa).
• Beertown Austin chats it up with the founders of Austin’s Independence Brewery on their 5th Anniversary.
• Killer Kale Krisps from ATX Gluten-Free.
• Congrats to Taco Journalism for making it into Austin Monthly.
• And Tipsy Texan made the Statesman TWO days in a row. WOOT!

Tidbits

• Move to Austin blogs while her child screams. Good thing it’s not a streaming lifecast!
• Over at These Are Days, txmomof3 shares pictures of her 4-year old daughter’s drawing of mermaids in bikinis and her son’s ninja leaf. So effing cute. It’ll  make your day!
• Last week over 100 trees were planted in Pease Park. Austin Parks Foundation Blog has pics to prove it.

Why spend Sunday Monday Tuesday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory (rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com) and let him know!

Just like a bad case of poison ivy that seems to clear up but then ends up in your arm pit two weeks later, the Around the Republic feature is BACK! Many apologies: We had a case of the swine!

It’s a Fine Day, People Open Windows

After being dry as a bone all summer, the creeks and rivers are starting to show signs of life.  And doesn’t the green (and allergies) remind you of spring?

• Greg over at Beetsolonely took a trip out to Reimers Ranch.  See pics of the Pedernales with water and WILDFLOWERS!
• Austin Parks takes a walk along the West Bouldin Creek Greenbelt. MORE WILDFLOWERS!
• Annie over at The Transplantable Rose has photos of her Butterfly Garden in bloom. Just in time for the monarch migration!

Get Out the Brain, Election Time Again

So in Texas we vote on Constitutional Amendments on the odd-numbered years.  This Dillo doesn’t know a damn thing about politics, so check out the Burnt Orange Report‘s Guide to the 2009 Texas Constitutional Amendment Elections.  Growing Democracy in Precinct 463 also has their own guide. [Editor's note: If you find a guide from a conservative Austin area blogger, let us know! We cldn't find one.]

City Hall Gets Bizz-Ay!

City Council actually had four big items on the agenda this week:

• The 3ft Safe Passing Ordinance passed (by way more than 3 ft), giving bicyclists and other vulnerable road users a cushion of protection (via Austin on Two Wheels)
• The texting ban passed
• Water Treatment Plant 4 passed (via Keep Austin Wonky)
• First Vote on Solar Panel Funding passed (via Burnt Orange Report)

Help Hurt Austin Artists..errr, Help Austin Artists Who Are Hurt

Ian McDougall, guitarist for the Riverboat Gamblers, was seriously injured the night of October 17th when he was hit by a car while riding his bike home.  Not only does he have to spend his b-day in the hospital, but the medical bills are piling up.  ATXBS has posted a letter from his bandmates. Just looking at the picture of Ian in the hospital is enough to make my lil Dillo heart swell. And if that doesn’t work, this moving call to action by Vanessa over at Sailor Legs will def do the trick.

How Much Do You Know About Austin’s Homeless?

• We’re working on a video post about Mobile Loaves and Fishes, a non-profit that feeds and clothes the homeless. Until then, check out these slideshows about Austin’s Homeless population and Mobile Loaves and Fishes (via New Media Lab).
• Also, have you seen The Homeless Aloha Vision Quest? It’s the personal blog about being homeless by Elijah.  His blog really gives an inside look at the nomadic world of Austin’s homeless.  He’s a great writer and it’s full of profiles of people he meets along the way, like this post on Allison. BTW, it’s not depressing or sad. It’s beautiful. Elijah describes a butterfly dancing on a coffee cup.

Austin Film Festival

Austin isn’t just music. We have quite a few film festivals here, too. Today we are halfway through Austin Film Festival.  You have until Thursday to catch a film or two.  Unable to attend? Check out Slackerwood‘s Daily Dispatch.  We also have a few interviews coming up in the next few days.

What The Heck is a Sharrow?!

Last week, Austin got it first set of sharrows.  What is a sharrow? It’s a shared lane arrow thing to indicate the roadway is to be shared between cyclists and cars. More information can be found at ATXBS.

Is that Austin Rock?! Well TURRRN it UPPP!

Lots of music from Austin bands has come out over the last few weeks:

• Sad Accordions drop “Sacrificial Chumpsucker Diatribe” (via Austin Town Hall; post includes MP3 Download)
• Great Nostalgic have a new single. Check out “Spirit World” (via Austin Town Hall; post includes MP3 Download)
• The Black and White Years recently released a new EP. Check out Austin Music’s review of “Nursery Myths.”

Just Injured My Pride

Have you ever been walking into a club or down the street, and then you fall and bust your ass? You might try to play it off like you were about to go into a headspin. Or maybe you turn red and pray that no one saw you. Well, what would you do if millions of people saw it on YouTube?  No one knows better than Julie, the woman who was stomping grapes and fell.  Check out the interview with her over at Move to Austin.

From Austin City Hall

Lots of surveys coming out of city hall. Plus, it’s a great week if you are a small business contractor or a tree! When are they gonna award Dillo of the Year?! Maybe they could survey that…

• Survey on Austin’s current strengths and desired future improvements
• Survey to find Austin’s worst traffic intersection, trail, sidewalk, highway, etc.
• Survey on Austin’s Annual Trail of Lights
• City awards Contractor of the Year
• City awards Tree of the Year

From Austin Foodies

In case the wildflowers and green are throwing you off: It’s fall.  For foodies, that means that it’s TIME FOR YUMMY SQUASHES and PUMPKINS!

• Jessica over at ATXGlutenFree has a recipe for Spiced Pumpkin, Lentil and Goat Cheese Salad
• The Best of Thymes has a recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto
• Lazy Smurf over at Lazy Smurf’s Guide to Life gives us a Risotto with Amaranth Greens, Raisins and Pine Nuts
• eat’n veg’n offers a comfort food filled Tandori Vegetable Bake, Collards and Fried Squash
• The holidays mean lots of entertaining. Check out this Savory Chex Mix with Pumpkin Seeds recipe from Fête & Feast.  Be sure to look at The*Rebeccammendations list of Classic American Entertaining.

Tidbits

• Cold weather means cuddling. Carolyn over at An Austin Counselor has her list of ways to increase intimacy.
• Halloween is this week. Kristen at pommes frites dressed her puppy up in a shark’s costume.
• For one of her daily outfits, The Life and Times of Archy and Mehitabel transforms into an antelope.
• Tyler over at Two Grooves continues his series on how to be a rock star.
• Seth at Year of the Pizza has a new way to keep pizza warm: put a candle under the tray.
• Amanda from Disheveled Stars had a lovely night of pizza and beer.
• Lawnee had a pancakes and coffee day.
• Pics from the Sex and Death Art Opening Party at the Fifth Gallery
• Tolly at Austin Eavesdropper takes pics of Food Porn, aka the new gourmet doughnut trailer GourDoughs.

Why spend Sunday Monday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory (rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com) and let him know!

Although I love ACL Fest, a lil’ ‘Dillo like me has to be worried about getting trampled.  It’ll be worth it to see some of the bands on stage this year. And that grass–so luxurious!

If There’s Grass on the Field…

You hear that distant rumbling?  It’s the sound of the herd of music lovers descending on Austin for ACL Fest.  That distant clicking? It’s the sound of music bloggers tap-tap-tapping their ACL pre-game coverage.

• Austin Town Hall has started interviewing some of the big hitters.
• KUT’s Austin Music Matters blog has also started their ACL Song of the Day.
• Nightlife bloggers The Peen Scene have a fully-comprehensive list of all the unofficial ACL afterparties.
• This humble blog also started our ACL coverage last week. IF you haven’t seen it already, check out our  series on music-related Austinites’ choosing their ACL Picks.

BRAINS!!!

You may have noticed a few Zombies around town. Nope, they aren’t early arriving Pearl Jam fans; instead, these living dead are merely costumed aficionados of sci-fi, horror and fantasy films in town for Fantastic Fest.

• Film blog Slackerwood has day-by-day coverage of Fantastic Fest, chockful of reviews of some of the films and interviews with some of the actors and directors.
• ATX Gossip blog Hunting the Snark has great pics of the celebs and zombies in attendance at the Zombieland premier.  Woody Harrelson was there. I’ll let you decide which category he belongs in.

SQUASH!!

For you non brain eating types: Fall means IT’S TIME FOR SOME AUTUMN SQUASH! High in antioxidants, these oddly shaped veggies will keep you undead for as long as humanly possible.

• Crystal from The Best of Thymes shares her recipe for a butternut squash Book Club Soup.
• Austin Farm to Table shares a great recipe for Spaghetti Squash with Mushrooms and Arugula.

Thousand Rider March

M1ek over at M1ek’s Bake Sale of Bile breaks down a couple of misperceptions and flawed arguments that stand against the lightrail.  I love that he links to a post he wrote 5 years ago. FIVE YEARS AGO! Why are we still having this discussion?

Is it Monsoon Season Yet?

Thinking about creating a special section just to talk about rain.  It has been big news lately. Two reports say we’re in for a fall full of flooding: one from El Niño fans, the other from the Farmer’s Almanac. Let’s just hope this doesn’t happen over ACL!  At least the gardeners are LOVING it.

• Lawnee over at Lawnee’s Rants reminds us of the beauty of simple showers.
• Hopefully it won’t flood like it did in this picture from 1935 of Waller Creek flooding downtown (via @Downtown Austin)
• The Divas of the Dirt had a pirate/french themed post on Talk Like a Pirate Day. What might that mean? Well they made some weeds walk the plank AND cooked up a mess of French Food!
• The Garden Posse has their first sprout at the Lamar triangle the took over!

I’m With the Band

When I was a wee armadillo, I remember going to football games and being overwhelmed by all the raw energy–well, and mom was scared we’d get trampled.  txmomof3′s kids over at These Are Days didn’t seem to have the same sort of fear when they went to a recent UT Football game and sat with the band.  Judging by the pics, they seemed pretty happy.

From Austin City Hall

• Land for Water Treatment Plant 4 has been purchased.
• City seniors get affordable housing.

From the Foodies

• Austin Epicurean reviews new Sushi joint Sushi Zushi
• ATXGlutenFree serves up a giant Super Easy Breakfast Casserole. Looks perfect for those with friends visiting for ACL!
• September has to be one of the most birthdayest months of the year. On the realz, I seriously couldn’t tell you how many Facebook notifications I’ve gotten. The Rebeccamendations rebeccamends using a cake mold, like the cute monkey one she made for a friend.
• Austin Cocktail Throwdown has a new winner: La Condesa! Check out Too Much Information for some kick-a pics of the event.

Tidbits:

• Finley over at Wet Wired started a new job. Congrats!
• Big up to bike culture blog ATXBS for celebrating their 2 year birthday!
• After giving birth to twins 8 weeks ago (CONGRATS!), Cottage Girl over at Hybrid Cars and Cottages has come up with some baby gear she’s gonna invent.
• Photos of shadows at last week’s bike polo game (via Thy Neighbor’s Bike)
• Computer recycling at Goodwill works (via Visible Voices)
• Be Brave! (via These Are Days)

Why spend Sunday Monday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory (rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com) and let him know!

Yo! We’re on Facebook, son! Add us.

Takes One to Grow One

As reported last week, everything is in bloom.

• Annie from The Transplantable Rose has oodles of pics of her garden in bloom. More than last week!
• The Garden Posse reports on their recent guerrilla gardening raid on a North Lamar median: lots of good veggies will be growing soon!

APD New Patrol Beat: the Internet (EEK!)

R’uh r’oh! Cover your keyboards, folks! APD Chief Acevedo is sending a threat to anonymous commenters who criticize the Police Department on blogs, forums and news sites: KEWL IT or there may be criminal prosecution!

Hold up. Wait, what?  Is that the most pressing issue for APD? Grits for Breakfast explains that these anonymous commenters might indicate an internal problem at APD, and reminds us that no one like the 1st Amendment when it’s pointed at them.

Water you saying?

Last week, proponents and opponents of Water Treatment Plant 4 (WTP4) got together at Palmer Auditorium to debate the development schedule for the plant.  The majority of the opponents want to look at the environmental impacts of the new facility, while proponents think we need to build it ASAP to avoid some sort of catastrophe.  It’s way over my lil’ Dillo head, so you should head over to Keep Austin Wonky to check out Julio’s coverage of the event.

Sounds Like a Good Plan

The new stinking noise policies really butter my bread. I mean, there’s nothing more annoying than having an outdoor venue like Shady Grove shut down because of some noise violation. The system can be a little complicated for venue owners and hella frustrating for event goers. Joshua over at Austin Noise proposes a more efficient, less complicated plan to certifying outdoor venues. Chk it!

I-35 Gets a Celebrity Makeover!

Let’s face it, I-35 downtown looks like total ish. It’s an industrial, uninviting symbol of segregation. Hearken, ye: It’s about to get a superstar makeover.  The designers say the new look is “intended to be a gesture – a handshake under the freeway.”  Construction may begin as early as February 2010.  Check out Downtown Austin for some artist renderings and perspective. (Also, congratulate them on 100,000 page views!)

Congressional Districts Go Under the Knife…Again

Y’all remember the last time our great state was sliced up for Congressional redistricting? Tom Delay took out a knife and the Dems fled the state? Well guess what? We’re due to go under the knife again. Hopefully this time Austin won’t be so freakishly disfigured. (via Burnt Orange Report)

The Fresh Smell of Celluloid in the Morning

It’s film festival season in Austin. AGLIFF (Austin Gay and Lesbian Independent Film Festival) just closed, Fantastic Fest is about to start, and Austin Film Festival is just around the corner. Slackerwood has a great AGLIFF wrap-up and Fantastic Fest countdown. Chk Chk ‘em out!

Circle of Life

Life comes with a beautifully insane contract: We’re all gonna die.  You, me and all of our loved ones, when our time is up, that’s it.  It’s hard to swallow, but you have to remember: As one life passes, a new life begins.

Preparing for this post, I read 1000+ posts from my feed of Austin bloggers.  This week, I read two posts back-to-back that damn near brought me to tears bc they illustrate this circle of life in two equally moving ways.

• Crystal over at The Best of Thyme‘s grandmother’s funeral was last week. In this post, she looks back at her grandmother’s life and concludes the post with a recipe for her grandmother’s Texas Sheet Cake. Truly moving post (and the cake looks delish!)
• And if that story didn’t getcha, jump on over to The Simply Peachy to hear Amber’s story of holding her daughter for the very first time.  It’s part of a series on her daughter’s journey from near-still birth to present day.

From Austin City Hall

• New Budget passed. Median home tax increase: $85.  Read the press release to learn about all the amazing things they didn’t cut!

From the Foodies

• This is Life in Austin posts a list of picks for Austin Restaurant Week. Green Pastures seems to be the best choice, and here’s why
• Tasty Touring drops her best office lunch catering selections for downtown Austin
• So wrong, but soooo good: MisoHungry‘s (512) Pecan Porter Chocolate Mousse with Pecan Praline Liquor and Bacon spoon
• eat’n veg’n offers a Stuffed Flying Saucer Summer Squash recipe

Tidbits

• 100% Texan bike from Thy Neighbor’s Bike
• Life in Austin translates Corporate Speak
• Kristen at Pommes Frites visits Lockhart and takes pictures (Also, Kristen: Best of luck pursuing your passions!)
• TwoGroove tells you how NOT to get asked back to play at Hole in the Wall

ADDITIONS: Didn’t see your favorite blog post from the last week? Tell us about it in the comments!

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Why spend Sunday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory (rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com) and let him know!

You know why they call it Labor Day? Cause it’s a lot of work trying to get through the weekend in one piece.  Yup, we over here at RoA had too many friends in town, too many drinks and too much fun.  After a week hiatus, we’re back with our favorite posts from Austin bloggers for the week of XXXX.

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like…Springtime?

Nope, you aren’t dreaming: It’s raining in Austin! From the look of things outside, it may as well be spring.  Scorched earth giving way to green means many a gardener are loaded with trowels, ready to get DURTY!

• Annie from The Transplantable Rose celebrates the breaking of our collective fever and snaps some beautiful night photos of her Moonflower Vine.
• The Garden Posse will be hitting up a couple of triangles with some guerrilla gardening this week. Check this post for date, time and location.
• Coyote Mercury took advantage of a break in the rain to hit up a trail in his neighborhood. Post includes pics of this odd, springlike flora behavior.

Remembering September 11th

Eight years later, the horrors of 9/11 still weigh on the nation.

• We love this post from momof3 over at These Are Days giving her account of the days events.
• Perhaps not 9/11 related, but still timely, Lavanna over at I Stare at People painted an awesome portrait of a retired military man

Pole Dancing Nightmares

Tolly over at Austin Eavesdropper recounts a pole dancing accident at gay dance club Kiss and Fly over the holiday wknd. Tolly, fess up: That “friend” was really you. It’s ok. We’ve all been way too drunk at a gay bar and did things we may or may not have regretted later.  For example, I have a “friend” who blacked out at a gay bar , only to wake up the next morning in the middle of an accident with a different kind of pole…don’t tell anyone.

Make New Friends…

• East Austinite welcomes a new contributer
• And Taco Journalism welcomes two

Teabagging the Capital

Texans from all across, um, Texas descended on the Capital to protest high taxes, national healthcare and…Sorry, i can’t continue writing this.

Look, folks, I’m a ‘Dillo, so I don’t really care about politics. But I don’t quite understand how an event that happened 200 years ago to protest taxation without representation is connected to a group of people protesting taxes; we have representation, and our president was elected by a majority. Anyway, I digress. We have a 1st Ammendment, and I love it when people exercise those rights–but don’t get crazy.

• Snowed In gives a first-hand account of the rally from a conservative dad’s point of view. He shares lessons learned, mainly: Don’t bring a 5-year old to a protest. While there, he saw three counter-protesters
• Lindsay over at Crap in a Bucket was one of those three folks protesting the protest. Check out her account of the event. Maybe Crap in a Bucket and Snowed In can get together and have coffee….
• For pictures and YouTube videos of the event, you can also check out Houston Tea Party Society.

Take Another Pizza My Heart Now Baby

• The folks over at Homeslice Pizza are vacationing in NYC and eating tons of pizza. Follow their adventures here.
• While the Homeslice folks are on their Pizza Pilgrimage, Seth over at Year of the Pizza has been chronicling his trip through insanity free pizza withdrawal.  [Backstory: Seth won Homeslice's "Hands on an Eggplant Sub" Contest in May and gets free pizza for a year. Poor guy was recently laid off, and as a result, eats more pizza than anyone we know.] The pictures of Seth in a cardboard box labeled “S.S. Free Pizza” are def worth the click.

From Austin City Hall

• That grassy taste in your water comes compliments of blue green algae in Lake Austin. Don’t worry. It’s ok to drink.
• Your lawn isn’t the only victim of the drought. The wells that feed Deep Eddy pool are damn near dry, resulting in the closure of the shallow end.

From Austin Area Foodies

Maybe it was the holiday. Maybe it was the rain. Whatever it was, the food bloggers have been eating, cooking and writing up a storm. SRSLY, you guys: SLOW DOWN! You’re putting the rest of us bloggers to SHAME!

• Natanya over at Fete & Feast resumes Food Trailer Friday after a heat hiatus. This week she reviews Vietnamese Trailer: Lulu B’s.
• Tasty Touring reviews Austin Bagel shops in a totes LOL post lovingly titled “Two Jews and a Goy Eat Five Kinds of Bagels and ‘Roll’ Home.”
• Poco-Cocoa visits Justine’s, the newly opened, eastside French Brasserie that already has a hella long wait (yeah, we wanted to try it, but couldn’t wait for 45 min).
• Austin Farm to Table loves the new sustainable restaurant Olivia.
• The Rebeccamendations offers a quick and easy recipe for “No Fret-ta Brushcetta.”
• Our favorite boozy chef, MisoHungry, drops a recipe for Beer Bread.

Tidbits

• Creative bloggers Public School took back to school portraits in traditional elementary school manner
• Doublespeak over at The Life and Times of Archy and Mehitabel made a really cool needlepoint, um, clean up rag. It uses erotic art from a greek urn as inspiration, so be warned this is NSFW
• The Midlife Gals discuss hit TV show “So You Think You Can Dance” from the hippie perspective <—This is pretty darn LOL.  Ladies, come DT and we’ll dance with you!
• Move to Austin shares Austin unemployment numbers. To clear the bad juju out of her life, she visits a psychic woman who does some voodoo. Will this help her husband find a job? We hope so!
• Adam over at The Apiary News takes a look at Soviet fetishism in Austin club/bar logo design and wonders if perhaps those symbols are as bad as the swastika. From our own experience, Adam, a lot of people think it is.

Didn’t see your favorite blog post from the last week? Tell us about it in the comments!

Why spend Sunday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory and let him know!

BRRR! This 96 degree weather is giving me the chills. Have y’all seen my hoodie?

Two Austin Bloggers Get Facelifts

• Well, they didn’t, but their sites did. Check out music blog Austin Townhall’s and food blog Tasty Touring‘s new looks.

OMG! Don’t TXT the BFF DT

City Council approved a preliminary ban on texting while driving. The ordinance hasn’t been drafted yet, but the blogosphere is still sounding off:

• Robbie Cooper over at UrbanGround is pleased as punch; he hates “asswipes who text or talk on the cell phone while driving.”
• Scott Henson at Grits for Breakfast thinks the texting ban is a ploy by the city that denies commuter reality in order to earn more revenue. He also thinks the city should rent a billboard if they want to raise awareness of a dangerous issue. Um, Scott, nobody would see it bc they’d be too busy texting…d’uh!

3-Feet Wide and Biking

The bicycle blogs (and our own editor Chris Apollo) are celebrating the City Council’s approval of a resolution for safe passing of bicyclists, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users.

Quiet on the set!

Oh snap! Robert Rodriguez is filming his newest movie, Machete, all over downtown.  Some celebs (the Hollywood type, not the Internet type) include: Robert DiNero, Jessica Alba and Lindsay Lohan.

• While we Austinites have avoided the Paparazzi, the Twitterazzi have been out and snappin pictures around the set.
• If you’re looking for some photos with HARDCORE CELEB action, head on over to Slackerwood for more photos from the set of Machete.

Cloudy with a Chance of Tree Limbs

We did get a little rain this week, and with each flash shower came a mess of wind.

• More than 70 mature trees in Pease Park were brought down.  Austin Parks Foundation Blog has pictures and a plea to help plant more.
• Babar, the old, giant cedar elm growing up between The Midlife Girls‘ porch, suffered some injuries. and as a result will have to be put down.  This is the girls’ goodbye letters to their old friend.

Summer’s over

Yeah, um, all that traffic around campus (and near Target or Bed, Bath & Beyond) means one thing: School is back in session.

• Lawnee went school supply shopping
• Life in Austin reflects on having his wife and his two kids start school
• Decider posts ways students can make fast money (Medical experiment: Check! Plasma: Check!)

The Neighborhood Association to Control the Universe…

…or at least almost the whole city of Austin.  Check it: A dude who’s title is “The Great and Powerful Oz” (seriously) has created a neighborhood association called the “Super Duper Neighborhood Objectors and Appealers Organization.” By creating a neighborhood association that covers the whole city, the Wiz is entitled to a hearing for anything that falls within his boundaries and the city has to give notice. It’s expensive. Woosh. Over my head, but Austin Contrarian does a great job at explaining it.

Fun Fun Fun Fest!

The smallest (but funfunfunest) of Austin’s three big festivals, the Fun Fun Fun Fest, announced their full full full line up this week.  To help support the local scene, The folks over at ‘Nites posted their list with reviews of Austin bands playing the fest.

Lies Lies Lies Yeah!

Capital Metro is trying to pull a fast one on us with their latest plans for the Red Line (duh!) (via M1EK’s Bake Sale of Bile)

From Austin City Hall

The Fed gave us $2 million of HUD funds–woo hoo!–and we’re spending it on: cars for everyone!! What? Oh, wait. Just kidding. We’re spending it on “legacy projects and job stimulus.” In layman’s terms: “The money will fund four community development projects that will address infrastructure needs in East Austin and offset construction costs for nonprofit facilities.”

From Austin Area Foodies

• Dining in Austin reviewed Z-Tejas (mmmmm. Crispy Crab Tacos!)
• It’s HATCH CHILI PEPPER SEASON!!! AYE AYE AYE!  Don’t know what to cook? Try this Hatch Green Chile-Stuffed Bison Burgers Topped with a Deconstructed Guacamole (via Fete and Feast) or try Austin Farm to Table‘s Texas Sweet Onion and Hatch Chile Soup
• Cherries will be going out of season soon, but there is still time to try MisoHungry‘s (not for the kids) Maraschino Cherry recipe
• Taco Journalism says avoid Ken’s Taco and Subs
• East Austinite posts a glimpse into The Fork, East Austin’s forthcoming Burger Joint

Tidbits:

• Crossland Realtors reflect on what makes Austin Austin
• Wholesome shots of this month’s Critical Mass (via ATXBS)
• Best blackout poem EVER: “a story begins when a bomb meets the her And he sees death and something to live for” (via Austin Kleon)
• Photo of a rainbow during one of the crazy evening showers this week
• Frog prince found on Town Lake bridge (via These Are Days)
• AustinOfficeBlog is on the hunt for the messiest Office in Austin. Do you qualify? Enter now!

Didn’t see your favorite blog post from the last week? Tell us about it in the comments!

Why spend Sunday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory and let him know!

Yo! Sorry this is up on Monday. My cousin is a Freshman at UT this fall, and I had to help get him set up in the Dillo Dorm down by Waller Creek on campus. So without further ado, it’s time to start ROLLING!

Unfair Fare Increase

Hey Capital Metro: Did you know we are in the midst of a killer recession?

• Apparently not, since you want to raise rates right when people need to use your service most (via Fare Enough).
• M1ek over at M1ek’s, Bake Sale of Bile, is also not happy with the new proposed route cuts. I’m just pissed that they want to cut the Dillo routes…

Ride a Bike Instead

• Jason from ATXBS and a bunch of other reps from various cycling groups met the municipal courts to talk about fines. The group advised the city to lower the bike violations to at least the same as cars. (Congrats to ATXBS for getting written up in New York Magazine!)
• Speaking of fines, Austin on Two Wheels got to participate in the Mountain Bike Patrol Class the city gives to the bike cops. Guest writer at Austin on Two Wheels Eileen Schaubert from Mellow Johnny’s gives us the inside scoop.

And they’re off…

This week, Kay Bailey officially announced (finally? again?) her candidacy for governor of Texas.

• The guys over at Burnt Orange Report think she’s already breaking the law (r’uh r’oh!). And is she longing for the days of segregation?
• Robbie Cooper, blogger over at conservative site UrbanGrounds, is calling for Kay Bailey to retire
• For the record: We’re tickled pink at the prospect of a cat fight between Kay Bailey and Rick Perry. Let the fur fly!

Caution: Festivals Ahead!

• OMG OMG OMG! ACL Aftershows announced. Have you bought your tix? (via AustinSound)
• FunFunFun Fest line-up is breaking all sorts of drought restrictions with all the leaks around the lineup. (via Ultra8201)

Austin Music Scene Still Rockin’…

• Austin Town Hall and ‘NITES both share their Top 5 Austin Music Venues
• But Austin TwoGrooves reminds us that: 1) It’s all about the money and 2) bands don’t promote themselves properly

Up in the sky: It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…a tree?

As part of the deconstruction of the water treatment plant, a 21-inch thick live oak tree was moved to Town lake. Check the pictures over at Downtown Austin

SAVE EAST AUSTIN’S POST OFFICE

Apparently the USPS doesn’t know that Eastside isn’t all ghetto.  Although the beloved neighborhood is being gentrified, the East Austin Post Office is under threat of being closed. East Austinite has more on the closing and how you can mobilize so that East Austinites don’t have to suffer at the South Austin station (which really does suck).

From City Hall

• The new parking meters give you receipts that you have to post in your car. Apparently people are having a hard time putting them in the right place (curbside on the inside of the windshield) and are getting tickets. The city is extending the grace period on proper display and will not be issuing tickets for these violations. (Phew!)
• The EPA may enforce Ozone restrictions if our air doesn’t shape up within the next two months. The city wants you to help.

From the Foodies

• Balsamic Red Wine Sauce looks amazing over at Fete & Feast
• Rebeccamendations takes a trip to new sushi location Piranha Sushi. So does This is Life in Austin
• Taco Journalism visits La Condesa
• Tasty Touring munches on Austin’s Best Cupcakes

Tidbits

• ZILKER PARK IS OPEN! Austin Parks Foundation Blog has pics!
• James over at Coyote Mercurity snaps some pictures of happy snakes in the creek by his house
• Angeliska made a treasure box for the lead singer of Bats and Lashes and got on the guestlist for the show! (Great post full of pics)
• Even though we are in the midst of a drought, Punk Gardener still had a kick-A pear harvest!
• Hat Creek Burger company repurposes an old Arby’s hat sign (via Beetsolonely)
• Gatti’s Pizza has narrowed it down to 5 finalists for the new jingle (via Austin Sound)
• “Kill All Hippies” t-shirt photo from The Apiary News

Why spend Sunday reading the New York Times? Each week we bring you our favorite posts from local Austin bloggers.  If you see a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized, email Rory and let him know!

Yo, God! Turn on the A/C Already!

Yeah, it’s hot. How hot is it? Hot enough that our brothers and sisters in the blogosphere can’t stop writing about it.

• Over at a stitch in dye, it’s causing peach trees to grow pillow covers.
• Eric at Translucence is cranky, and this screenshot (something about 100+ degrees) explains why.
• Oh, and over at Austin Eavesdropper, it’s making Tolly look like the prom scene from Carrie.

Don’t fret (or sweat), the food bloggers are here to save the day:

• Tasty Touring drops a list of all her favorite places to get sweet treats to beat the heat
• Life in Austin experiments with the British Shandy, a mixture of beer and a sparkling citrus drink (aka the most amazing summertime, post-biking beer drink).
• If you like your cider hard, try out MisoHungry‘s Butter Beer recipe, submitted by Mike from Alamo Drafthouse.
• You could also try this refreshing grapefruit and vodka BBQ sauce recipe from the cosmic cowgirl.

Austin Bands Make Videos: JUST LIKE US!

• The Godfather of Austin music, Mr. Willie Nelson, has discovered iMovie.  Check out the self-made video for Shoeshine Man on YouTube. (via AustinSound)
• And Austin semi-psychedelic rock bank The Lennings took over an abandoned mental institution for their new video.

Room 710 Closes; Owner FLAMES Blogger

Red River cock rock live music venue Room 710 recently closed its doors.  Tyler over at TwoGrooves wrote his eulogy to the renegade bar and noted that owner Asher Garber seemed to place the blame on everyone except himself. Check this email thread to see just how pissed off Asher got.

Wheels of Steal

Republic of Austin Editor Chris Apollo loves the Thursday Night Social Ride put on by Social Cycling ATX.  That’s why he got super upset to hear that someone stole purses, phones, iPods and a PASSPORT during a break on the ride last week.  Come on, folks! Why do you have to ruin one of the most kickback, accepting rides hitting the pavement right now?

Up Waller Creek Without a Cycle

Roma Design Group is drafting its Master Plan for development of the Waller Creek District, and urban cyclists are gearing up to give their recommendations.

• Downtown Austin has video covering a recent bike tour of the area that was set up to facilitate discussion around future possibilities.
• Austin on Two Wheels talks to Waller Creek Commision member Jeb Boyt about the future outlook for cyclist access throughout the Waller Creek Corridor.

Director Discusses Filming in Austin

The folks over at Slackerwood posted an interview with writer/director Simon Rumley about filming in Austin.  Simon was recently in town shooting his new film “Red, White and Blue.” Want to know more about the movie? You’re in luck: Slackerwood got to work on the set and have blogging about their experiences.

From City Hall

• 10 Austin schools are getting solar panels.
• Take a survey to help affect the Waste Management Master Plan.
• Bull Creek Park’s vegetation is dying and the water has some insane amount of E. Coli in it. The city blames the dogs. Check out what they want to do to restore the park.

Tidbits

• Poco-cocoa used to be scared of spiders in her milk
• Whether open or closed, we all have doors to walk through
• Blackout Poem about yelling at people at Home Depot written by local writer Austin Kleon
• txmomof3 over at These Are Days looks a her children’s toy weapons collection
• Above These People blogger Michael considers becoming a Male Vampire Model
• Libra Fitness thinks we need to stay in the moment when dieting

See a post on your favorite blog that needs recognition? Email rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com or Tweet him at @ATX4U by Friday at midnight and we’ll share it!

Each week we take a look at what’s going on in the Austin Blogosphere. See a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized? Email Rory and let him know!

Sorry this is late, folks. Too much fashion had me WIPED out this weekend!  Here’s what’s good in Austin this week.

There’s a new cicada in town

Have you heard a mysterious noise that sounds like a whistle stop or a fax machine screaming? Our friends over at Austin Metblogs have figured it out: Quesada gigas.  Originally from Mexico, this giant cicada was spotted for the first time in Travis County earlier this month.  Its sound (click here for an mp3) is made by inflating an air sac in its abdomen.

Lovely Rita Meter Maid Now Unemployed

Packaged in the lovely color of green, the city announced this week that it would be installing “new solar powered pay stations” to “replace the City of Austin’s 3,800 outdated and failing single space parking meters.”  Wow! Who knew we had such shoddy meters? NEW NEW NEW! MORE MORE MORE! And don’t fret: According to the press release, 500 of them will be recycled. The press release doesn’t say what will happen to the remaining 3,300, but hey, we can use debit cards on these, right?  I just hope the pay stations don’t run on Windows Vista.

Look for the new stations starting on July 22nd.  Bicyclists, look for new bike racks to replace the old meters sometime before Thanksgiving.

Downtown Living is for the dogs

Dog lovers: According to the Keller Williams blog, the Austonian welcomes dogs.  If you can afford the high price tag, you can keep you canine companion.  You can also stay at the Sheraton Four Seasons with Poochie while you wait for your million-dollar condo to be  completed.

A Castle of our Own

No need to wait in a cow patty field out in Burnet for 4 hours to see a castle.  Apparently Austin has a few of our own!

This week, Downtown Austin takes a look at a stony fortress right here in river city.  The castle on the hill behind the old old Whole Foods at Lamar and 10th has been there since the 1800′s.  At one point, it was the Texas Military Institute, making it the oldest collegiate building in existence…in Texas.  It’s also the reason that neighborhood is named “Castle Hill.” Who knew?

Speaking of Castles: The Most Interesting Cluster Kuff

The wrath of the blogosphere this week was directed towards Dos Equis’ and Rare Magazine’s Most Interesting Academy (aka the Castle Party).  Held out in a castle in Burnet, the party promised some interesting attractions, including sky diving simulations, DJ Z-Trip and free booze.  Republic of Austin bloggers Ari, Chris and Sophia made it out and had an awesome time.  Some of their friends, along with thousands of others, didn’t get to make it in.

Here’s why:

• Depending on route and traffic, Burnet is more than an hour away.
• The promoters encouraged attendees to take shuttles.
• With a limited amount of shuttles and more RSVPs (like thousands more) than capacity, many people were left waiting in the 104 degree heat, either in Burnet after driving or busing there, or in Austin waiting for shuttles that didn’t come at 5, 6 or 8 P as promised.  (Some people, however, apparently snuck through the woods and stormed the castle!)

The next day, all hell broke loose. The comments to the DO512 event posting blew up with testimonials about waiting for hours and then not getting let in.  Tyler Groover at Examiner wrote a scathing post about the event–but the comments were full of rage directed at Do512 after DO512_Jimmy wrote in his comment: “Either way, the Do512 crew had a blast, XX was nice enough to provide us w/ a bus, the event was awesome on the inside (just wish the beer were colder).” DO512 really wasn’t to blame; they only had 1800 RSVPs. Rare Magazine had almost 4000!

Dos Equis swiftly reached out to the negative commenters.  They also released an apology and promised a make-up party. DO512 and Rare magazine also both issued apologies, distancing themselves as mere marketing tools.

All’s well that ends well, right? Ajay over at ‘NITES says he’s learned his lesson: Don’t fall for big corporate marketing schemes.

Check this YouTube video from mattreyes. These people waited for 5 hours:

Nom Nom Nom: Munchies from the Foodies

• Tasty Touring visits Nubian Queen Lola’s Cajun Soul Food
• Austin Epicurian reminisces about Thailand while visiting Muangthai restaurant
• I Love Beer looks at tasty summer seasonals
• Miso Hungry Now tells you how to make Fried Nori Meat Rolls

Tidbits:

• Raquel over at HomeGirl wants to know where the people of color blog. Non-whites and whites are encouraged to leave a comment with their blog’s URL.
• 9:10 has a list of the top watering holes in Austin. That list might need to be amended if this drought continues.
• The world famous Hamburger Bed, created by Austinite Kayla Kromer, was sold on EBay this week for $3,000! That’s an expensive burger.
• Katy, over at All About Me, gives some inspirational words to the single folks in a post titled “Dear Past Lovers: You Totally Screwed Up.” After years of getting dumped, Katy has now found love, and it’s better than she ever imagined.
• The diversity of Austin’s bicycling community will not be seen in a pamphlet on the city’s Bike Master Plan.  Austin Texas Bike Stuff breaks it down.

See a post on your favorite blog that needs recognition? Email rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com by Friday at midnight and we’ll share it!

Katie. by Alex Rager on Flickr

This week starts a new weekly series called Around the Republic. See a post from your fave Austin blog and want it to get recognized? Email Rory and let him know!

Need something to read before during True Blood while waiting for Entourage? Here are a few posts from blogs around the republic that you may have missed this week. Enjoy!

Cyclists Struck by Reckless Driver

During the Full Moon Cruise last week, an angry driver got a little aggressive and weaved erratically through the mass of cyclists, allegedly striking one of them. Thankfully the driver get caught.

Jason over at Austin Texas Bike Stuff has witness accounts from the scene, video footage of the reckless driving and photos of the driver getting busted by the cops.  There are also some good shots of the car’s license plate.  Of course the mainstream media didn’t cover this one.  Their too busy making up stories about bikers creating guerilla commuting lanes.

Portrait of A Homesick Texan

Over on Appetite, photojournalist Penny De Los Santos has a great portrait of Lisa Fain, aka Homesick Texan.  The portrait, the first in a series of photos of food people, shows Lisa in her New York City apartment.  Check it out. Also, if you’re a foodie, you have to peep Lisa’s blog.  It’s chock full of great southern cooking.

Tales from the Outlands

Kristi Willis over at Austin Farm to Table took a trip out to the Dripping Springs farmer’s market.  She gives a nice review of her findings, particularly of note: the greens and microgreens.  Head on over to Kristi’s blog for the low down.

Nothin says America like an 8-year-old on an ATV decked out in red white and blue streamers.  That’s just one of the many images snapped by UrbanGrounds of the Spicewood Springs 4th of July parade.  All the kiddie bikes with training wheels in the parade are pretty effin cute, and the Civil War reenactment soldiers are something you’d only find…well, not in downtown Austin.

Drought? No doubt!

With all this record-breaking heat, it’s no surprise we’re in a  drought! Yup, the Green Belt is bone dry and Lake Travis is 38 ft below full.  That means we gotta scrimp on our water usage.  The sprinkler system is normally the first to go.  Apparently, that’s not so easy if you live in the suburbs or are selling a home.

Austin Contrarian takes on the suburban lawn watering mafia by suggesting the city raise the cost of water. And CrosslandRealtors tells the story of a particularly pesky buyer who claimed the summer-green lawn was dead.  SimpleGestures reminds us that it’s the poorest among us who need water to survive.

Nom Nom Nom: Munchies from the Foodies

If you are newly southern or in need of a refresher course, Austin Epicurean gives you all the skinny on BBQ, including a history of the summer tradition and a review of Poke Jo’s

Tidbits

I’m glad the city’s press department has enough time to issue releases about a new live music venue. Wondering how long it will be before the Neighborhood Assoc has this one shut down

Quilts, cows and train depots over at a stitch in dye.

Google may have updated their street grid to include the new Mueller development, but the satellite image is out of date.  Makes for an interesting blend. (via Terror in the Heartland)

See a post on your favorite blog that needs recognition? Email rory[at]republicofaustin[dot]com by Friday at midnight and we’ll share it!